Postgraduate Diploma in Fundamental Buddhist Studies

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DBSX 05 - DISSERTATION

HOW BUDDHIST PRACTICE HELP MAKE SINGAPORE THE HAPPIEST COUNTRY IN ASIA.

Paper to be submitted by:

Candidate name: XU RINWEI @ Koh Lim Ooi

SINGAPORE NRIC No. S2568143F

15-Dec-12

Topic: HOW BUDDHIST PRACTICE HELP MAKE SINGAPORE THE HAPPIEST COUNTRY IN ASIA Submitted by: Mr. Koh Lim Ooi 1. Introduction:
Happiness lies at the heart of everyone. Singapore was ranked the happiest city in Asia in 2011, by a study conducted by Gallup, The World Values Survey and the World Database of Happiness, sponsored by The National Geographic magazine. Singapore is the happiest country in Asia, reports Singapores Sunday Times, quoting the American explorer Dan Buettners book, Thrive, Finding Happiness The Blue Zones Way. What is Happiness? How do we measure happiness? Happiness can be defined as a mental or emotional state of wellbeing characterized by positive or pleasant emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. A variety of biological, psychological, religious, and philosophical approaches have striven to define happiness and identify its sources. We can broadly classify happiness into : a. Material Happiness b. Spiritual Happiness

15 Dec. 2012

2. Survey:
There seems to be much survey, all with differing basis of defining happiness, and each coming up with different results. In some of those studies Singapore was not the happiest country in Asia. All study of Happiness so far measures material wealth as it is no yardstick to measure spiritual happiness of a country. Of course it is a known fact that Buddhists are happier people. The aim is how a country can implement similar measures for its people to have both material and spiritual happiness.

3. Why are Singaporeans considered one of the happiest people in Asia?

Singapore is a highly cosmopolitan country. It is multi-racial and multi-religious country. Singapore has a population of 5.3 million people in 2012, out of which 1.5 million or 28.3 percent are foreigners, including tourists and foreign workers .
(1)

To most governments, it would be of immense headache to govern a country with such a high variety of multi religious and multi racial population. Religion and racial issues are highly sensitive, and Singapore is surrounded by Muslim countries like Malaysia and Indonesia. The Singapore government promotes religious and racial harmony and encourages its citizens to practice their own choice of religions. There is freedom of religious practice and respect of different religions. Singapore, unlike lots of other cities in Asia, is very secure. Children and women can walk the streets at night safely without being robbed, etc. There is minimal discrimation between races and genders. There is no class system. The taxi, bus transport and Mass Rapid Transit system is very efficient and covers practically the whole city. The government encourages people to stay closer to their aging parents. That way the elderly are taken care of and happier, and it turns out the way socialization works, we get more satisfaction retroactively socializing with our parents than anybody else. The other objective of this paper is also to show how Singaporeans can achieve deeper inner Happiness with the guidance of Buddhist dharma. It includes bringing about inner peace, love and tolerance among its many races, racial harmony and fraternity.

1. Singapore government data: www.gov.sg-factually.

4. Concept of Happiness a Basic Material Happiness

Basic Happiness must include basic access to food, shelter, security and health care. Money doesn't buy much happiness unless it is used in certain ways. "Beyond the point at which people have enough to comfortably feed, clothe, and house themselves, having more money - even a lot more money - makes them only a little bit happier." A Harvard Business School study found that "spending money on others actually makes us happier than spending it on ourselves" [3]. In order for the people to be happy, social stability and economic prosperity also form the foundation for peace of mind for its populace. It has a strong, stable, efficient and meritocratic government, with strong morals and good rule of law in place. Practically 90 percent of Singaporeans owned a home due to the government's capable social engineering. First homes are made affordable for all newlyweds. In a meritocratic society like Singapore, achieving academic success is the surest way to achieving material success. Fundamentally, there is nothing morally wrong with pursuing academic success and achieving material wealth. But if material success becomes the ultimate goal and main source of happiness in Singapore, how far would its citizens go to achieve their goals? It is very probable that our young people are unhappy precisely because they have been influenced to equate material success with happiness. It would be tragic for our society if young people do not think twice about compromising their integrity, compassion, respect and sense of justice and charity in a bid to pursue material wealth.

When happiness is defined by how many of the 5Cs you have, and how much savings and income you have at your disposal, there will be little room for compassion towards the disadvantaged and the marginalised in society. It is instructional that baby boomers polled were found to be most happy, and their source of happiness was traced to their closeness with their families and their spirituality. This is the generation whose parents supported larger families, who probably worked hard to raise their children and, in the process, had to sacrifice their time and resources for the good of the larger family. In a mature society, happiness is never personal, but is 100 per cent relational. And when my happiness is contingent on yours, then values like justice and equality matter more than numbers like gross domestic product. Society flourishes better when it is base on love, sympathy and co-operation rather than on acts of envy, anger and violence. A healthy and happy society demands that all its members should live with others amiably and should help and protect each other. Cruel and selfish individuals or communities who trample over the rights of others are like poisons to society. Education of its people should be base on just and moral principles for developing a harmonious, social goodwill and loving conscience in every child. Material and spiritual happiness are interdependent and interrelated. The importance of both must be realized. Justice, honesty, fellowship, freedom and truth are the principles of a strong and just society. To go beyond Material Happiness, it is very important to develop Spiritual Happiness.

b. Spiritual Happiness
Buddha is said to have acknowledged two types of principal happiness: happiness of the householders through the material and economic welfare called "Gihi Sukha" and the happiness of the renunciates, that of spiritual wellness called "Pabbajita Sukha".

Gihi Sukha or happiness for lay people, derives from the legitimate pursuit and acquisition of material possessions i.e., property, house, money, car, TV, etc. and enjoying same as normal human beings in society eating, drinking, singing, dancing or going to the movies, etc. that is, socializing in socially acceptable ways. Buddhism does not deny this type of material happiness. Buddhism however, while stressing on the ephemeral nature of this type of happiness as all material happiness is but transient, shows in specific terms how economic and material progress can be achieved despite its basic tenet, "All material happiness is but transient". There are no quick fixes for spiritual Happiness. Training of the mind takes effort and time. We need to go to the root of understanding suffering (dukka) and happiness (sukka) to be able to cultivate the conditions for genuine happiness. Happiness is freedom from mental confusion and self centered afflictions, finding meaning through insight and loving kindness. Happiness is how much a person likes the life he leads. Happiness is a state of inner fulfillment, not the gratification of inexhaustible desires for outward things. Anyone who enjoys inner peace is no more broken by failure than he is inflated by success. Happiness is the purging of mental toxins such as hatred, jealousy, envy and obsession. It is about how to put things in perspective and reduce the gap between appearances and reality. To that end we must acquire a better insight of how our mind works the nature of things and how suffering is deeply linked to a misunderstanding of the nature of life, that is, sufferings, cravings and habitual attachments. To love one-self is to love life. It is essential to understand that we make ourselves happy by making others happy. Everything in this world is relative. Nothing exists by itself. Once this concept of Dependent Origination is understood and internalized, the erroneous perception of this world gives way to a correct understanding of the nature of things. Sukka is the state of lasting well being that manifests itself when we have freed ourselves of mental blindness and afflictive emotions.

5. Buddhist Practice to achieve inner peace and happiness.

Buddha told Anathapindika, the great banker, a layman, about four types of happiness. An individual who lives in the society without retiring into a life of seclusion may enjoy four kinds of happiness. (14) 1. Happiness of ownership (atthi sukha) 2. Happiness of having wealth (bhoga sukha) 3. Happiness of freedom from debt (anana sukha) 4. Happiness of blamelessness (anavajja sukha) According to this mode, then, happiness is to enjoy material welfare, monetary or economic security through fair and righteous means. Happiness also can be enjoyed by utilizing the wealth liberally for ones self, for ones family, friends, relatives and by wholesome deeds. Happiness likewise can be experienced from becoming debt-free. Then there's happiness that is enjoyed through blamelessness resulting from the avoidance of unwholesome deeds. It must be noted here that physical happiness banks on the possession of material things, wealth and the utilization of the same for ones daily consumption, being debtfree and gaining a state of blamelessness. As evident, happiness of ownership, wealth and being debt-free all refer to economic security and stability whereas happiness of blamelessness refers to a higher level of happiness which is spiritual or psychological. The Buddha offered the following four duties that would guarantee One's Own Happiness. 1. A householder must be skillful, efficient, earnest and energetic in his work and know it well. (utthana sampada) 2. A householder must strive to protect his income. (arakkha sampada)

3. A householder must have good and reliable friends who are faithful, righteous, generous and intelligent who can direct him along the right path away from evil (kalyana mittata) and
(14) Walpola Rahula : What the Buddha taught pg.83

4. A householder must spend one's own income reasonably and must live within one's means in proportion to his income (sama jivikata). Thus, economic security leads to social solidarity. Happiness then can also be experienced by maintaining social togetherness or communion by engaging in altruistic and spiritual pursuits. It's a social contract of sorts with guarantees that bring about collective happiness. To this end, Buddhism teaches ten steps (as in the Anguttara Nikaya): 1. Taking care of the needs of parents 2. Attending to the welfare of children 3. Cherishing and looking after spouse 4. Maintaining mutual understanding, respect and strength in married life 5. Helping and attending to the needs of relatives 6. Showing respect to the elders or senior citizens 7. Recollecting the divinities (devas) and inviting them to share in the happiness of merits 8. Remembering the departed ones by performing wholesome and meritorious deeds and transferring of merit 9. Living in accordance with the society's civil and moral laws 10. Leading a righteous and compassionate way of life All these steps are related to the triad practice required of a Buddhist, generosity (dana), morality (sila) and meditation (bhavana) through which individuals can earn material happiness and spiritual happiness as well. Mind then is the fountain of happiness. This is not just an ordinary mind, but a directed, instructed and informed mind free from all bonds and fetters! Once freed from fetters, mind becomes imbued with divine virtues like universal goodwill and compassion. So, when His Holiness, Dalai Lama always says

"Compassion is my religion!" it's spontaneity! It's sheer happiness! It's indeed, "dwelling in the divine abodes" as Buddha put it! Self-control in deeds, self-control in words and self-control in thoughts are the key to happiness and these virtues provide people with the safety net of both a shelter and refuge. No citizen in this globe is immune from old age, sickness and death. Awareness of old age, sickness and death, and performance of good deeds lead to happiness. For, one who performs meritorious deeds and is restrained in body, speech and thought, attains the state of immortal happiness. Everyone wants to be happy, but happiness cannot be achieved in isolation. The happiness of one depends upon the happiness of all and the happiness of all depends upon the happiness of one. This is because all life is interdependent. In order to be happy, one needs to cultivate wholesome attitudes towards others in society and towards all sentient beings. The best way of cultivating wholesome attitudes towards all sentient beings is through meditation. Among the many topics of meditation taught by the Buddha, there are four specifically concerned with the cultivation of loving-kindness, compassion, appreciative joy and equanimity. These four are called the Four Immeasurables because they are directed to an immeasurable number of sentient beings, and because the wholesome karma produced through practicing them is immeasurable. The four are also called the sublime states of mind because they are like the extraordinary states of mind of the gods. By cultivating the wholesome attitudes of loving-kindness, compassion, appreciative joy and equanimity, people can gradually remove ill will, cruelty, jealousy and desire. In this way, they can achieve happiness for themselves and others, now and in the future. The benefit in the future may come through rebirth in the fortunate realms. Dhammapada states that "health is the greatest of gifts, contentment, the greatest of wealth; fidelity, the best of relationship and immortality, the ultimate evolution of human consciousness and Nirvana, the highest of happiness.

In the Buddhas blueprint of happiness there are three stages--moral behavior (sila), concentration (samadhi) and wisdom (panna). The foundation of happiness lies in the practice of moral principles. One does not have to wait until he reaches the end of the tunnel to see the light of happiness, for while being engaged in the path of practicing moral principles, he will certainly have moments of happiness as a fringe benefit. This means happiness comes from living a good moral life, not from immoral life. Why be good then? Because doing well for others do well for one and others, because it brings happiness. The truth is, when we do good, even if solely to help others, we inevitably, even if unintentionally and indirectly, end up helping ourselves too, as the practice of cultivating Compassion is a key factor for advancing on the path towards True Happiness. To be more kind is to become more aligned to our true nature, the Buddha-nature within. Being goodness is therefore good for one and all. Is it selfish to do good for oneself, and not so much for others? As a start, we might do good partly or even entirely for ourselves, so as to create positive karma and to avoid creating negative karma, for greater personal worldly happiness. This is natural, and the Buddha did encourage doing so for beginners. Such happiness can facilitate the spiritual life too, when used skillfully. However, he also urged the cultivation of the Four Immeasurables (Lovingkindness, Compassion, Rejoice and Equanimity) for spiritual happiness which is True Happiness. As we further cultivate these qualities, there will be less selfcenteredness, as we become more selfless in helping others. With Lovingkindness for all to be well and happy, Compassion for the suffering, Rejoice for the fortunate, and Equanimity which treats all (including oneself) impartially, selfishness will dissolve. Doing good with ever lesser fixations on self, this is how our karma becomes not just more and more good, but more and more pure . This is the deeper meaning of the third part of the famous Dhammapada verse 183 spoken by the Buddha 'To avoid doing all evil, to practice all good, and to purify the mind, these are the teachings of all Buddhas.' The perfecting of the Four Immeasurables, often abbreviated with Compassion to represent all four, along

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with the perfecting of Wisdom, culminate as one in Buddhahood. Herein lies the paradox To attain unconditioned True Happiness for one'self', one needs to work towards realisation of non-self, through unconditional service to others. This pure motivation is called Bodhicitta the precious altruistic aspiration to guide all to the True Happiness of Buddhahood, as perfectly expressed by the Buddha! Inner Peace - the real source of happiness Buddhism teaches people that the real source of happiness is inner peace. If our mind is peaceful, we shall be happy all the time, regardless of external conditions, but if it is disturbed or troubled in any way, we shall never be happy, no matter how good our external conditions may be. External conditions can only make us happy if our mind is peaceful. We can understand this through our own experience. For instance, even if we are in the most beautiful surroundings and have everything we need, the moment we get angry any happiness we may have disappears. This is because anger has destroyed our inner peace. "Mind precedes all things; mind is their chief, mind is their maker. If one speaks or does a deed with a mind that is pure within, happiness then follows along like a never departing shadow. ~ Dhammapada 1" We can see from this that if we want true, lasting happiness we need to develop and maintain a special experience of inner peace. The only way we can do this is by training our mind through spiritual practice - gradually reducing and eliminating our negative, disturbed states of mind and replacing them with positive, peaceful states.

Meditation - the method for controlling the mind Buddhism teaches that meditation is the method by which people can achieve inner peace. Meditation is a method for acquainting our mind with thoughts and feelings that are conducive to peace and happiness. When our mind is peaceful

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we are from worries and mental discomfort, and we experience true happiness. There are many lines of thought and feelings that Buddhists use as objects of meditation. These include love and compassion as well as special lines of reasoning that enable us to overcome negative states of mind such as selfcenteredness and having a biased attitude towards others. A very simple meditation used by nearly all Buddhists is breathing meditation. In this meditation we simply take the sensation of our breath as our object of meditation. Although it is only an introductory meditation, even this meditation can lead us to experiences of real inner peace and tranquility. Bringing peace and happiness to a troubled world - the ultimate aim of Buddhism Some people may believe that Buddhism is rather selfish because it seems to be concentrating only on inner peace. This is not the case, however; Buddhas main purpose in teaching people how they could achieve inner peace was so that they could then go on to share that experience with others. Buddhism teaches that this is the most effective way in which it is possible for them to benefit others. Entangled by the bonds of hate, he who seeks his own happiness by inflicting pain on others is never delivered from hatred. ~ Dhammapada 291" Buddhists understand that without inner peace outer peace is impossible. We all wish for world peace, but world peace will never be achieved unless people first establish peace within their own minds. Only by creating peace within our own

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mind and helping others to do the same can we hope to achieve peace in this world.

Happiness forms a central theme of Buddhist teachings. For ultimate freedom from suffering, the Noble Eightfold Path leads its practitioner to Nirvana, a state of everlasting peace. Ultimate happiness is only achieved by overcoming craving in all forms. More mundane forms of happiness, such as acquiring wealth and maintaining good friendships, are also recognized as worthy goals for lay people (see sukha). Buddhism also encourages the generation of loving kindness and compassion, the desire for the happiness and welfare of all beings. (f) The Buddhist term for happiness in the ancient Indian language of Pali, in which the Buddha is said to have spoken is "Sukha" as opposed to "Dukkha" suffering, dissatisfaction or misery. In other words, in the absence of suffering through pain and worry, there must of necessity be happiness. Pabbajita Sukha or the happiness of a renunciate or a recluse on the other hand derives from the total giving up of material possessions i.e. detachment from material possessions. An individual, seeing the transience of material possessions and life itself, retires into a life of seclusion and strenuously exercises to attain the highest state of happiness leading to immortality which Buddha described as "unborn and unconditioned". Of course, Gihi sukha is dependent on the possession the material things, hence, conditioned. The Satipatthana Sutta states that the mindfulness technique is the way to be free from suffering and attain the highest happiness Nibbana.
Here is some timeless advice from the Buddha from Section 38 of The Sutra in 42 Sections: The Buddha asked a Shramana [monastic], How long is the human life span? He replied, A few days. The Buddha said, You have not yet understood the way [to enlightenment]. He asked another Shramana, How long is the human life

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span? The reply was, The space of a meal. The Buddha said, You have not yet understood the way. He asked another Shramana, How long is the human life span? He replied, The length of a single breath. The Buddha said, Excellent. You have understood the way.

CONCLUSION An individual must cultivate vigilance, mindfulness and awareness, which leads to the abode of eternal life, security and happiness. The practice of mindfulness technique has brought tremendous happiness to many over the past 2600 years. If an individual is to be reflective and persistent, mindful, if that individual's deeds are to be pure, if s/he is to act with much consideration, if he becomes selfrestrained and live according to the Dhamma, his happiness will be secured in this world and as well as in the future rebirths. The happiness one experiences when things are seen in their reality surpasses all other forms of happiness. Buddha says if you really care for yourself or another, practice and encourage another to practice mindfulness, for there is no better gift that you can give yourself or another.

5. Bibliography 1. Singapore government data: www.gov.sg-factually. 2. Asthin Thittila : Essential themes of Buddhist Lectures 3. Bhante Saranapala PhD Candidate, Centre for the Study of Religion, University of Toronto : Concept of Happiness: A Buddhist Perspective 4. Buddha Dharma Education association & BuddhaNet : Buddhist studies for primary and secondary students, Unit Six: The Four Immeasurables 5. Dunn, E. W., Aknin, L. B., & Norton, M. I. (2008).: Spending money on others promotes happiness. Science, 319, 1687-1688. 6. Matthieu Ricard : Happiness- A Guide to developing Lifes most important skill

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7. Venerable Master Hsing Yun : Buddhism pure and simple 8. Venerable Master Hsing Yun : Lotus in a Stream 9. Venerable Master Hsing Yun : The Way to Happiness between Enlightenment and Ignorance 10. Venerable Master K Sri Dhammananda : What Buddhist Believe 11. Venerable Master K Sri Dhammananda : You & Your Problems 12. Venerable Master K Sri Dhammananda: 13. Venerable Ratmalane Somaloka: Mindfulness and Psychotherapy 14. Walpola Rahula : What the Buddha taught

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